The Wonderlanders
by DG Phillips
Summary: Since Alice's absence, a new threat has hit Wonderland, that of the White Queen, who wants to take control of Wonderland and the Looking Glass. Alice saved Wonderland before, can she do it again? Full summery inside. Please R&R
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the Syfy movie Alice, nor do I claim to own it's characters. This story is strictly for enjoyment purposes so please no one sue me! I do, however, own the DVD, some microwave popcorn and my own thoughts.

**Synopsis: **_The Wonderlanders_ picks up where _Alice_ left off, but Hatter tells Alice that they need to go back to Wonderland. Since her absence, a new threat has hit Wonderland, that of the White Queen, who wants to take control of Wonderland and the Looking Glass. Jack's life is hanging in the balance and the Wonderlanders have begun disappearing. Alice managed to save Wonderland once, can she do it again?

****A/N** **Well, this is my first contribution to FanFiction, so please don't be too harsh! I'm currently working on the full storyline for this, so the first chapter might be a little while in coming, but I hope the prologue is enjoyable!

**Prologue**

The flat looked different. It wasn't the kind of difference she could put her finger on though. There were still the wide chinese lanterns hanging from the ceiling, woven blinds covering the windows, the polished dining table she and her Mom ate all their meals at. Yet something was different. She observed the main room again, but this time with the eyes of someone who has travelled through Wonderland.

It was, she realised sadly, too plain.

"Well", Carol said cheerily, oblivious to the turmoil taking place within her daughter. "Here we are then. How about some tea?"

The corner of Alice's mouth twitched with irony. "Great", she mumbled.

While her Mum prattled away in the kitchen, Alice wandered into her bedroom. It seemed like so long ago since she had stood here, yet in her world it had only been the previous day when she had followed Jack onto the street and fallen -

- onto the harsh concrete and bumped her head, knocking herself unconscious. Alice was surprised her Mother had actually believed that story. But then, Wonderland didn't sound a hell of a lot more believable, did it? With a short sigh, Alice got to work. She had made the decision while in the hospital, to stop the search she had been making for her Dad. It wasn't as hard as she'd thought it would be. Considering she'd been looking for him since the day he disappeared, Alice found it incredibly easy and satisfying to remove the posters from her wall and pack her Father's trinkets into an old hat box of her Mother's. She sniffed a little while packing away some photographs, but she had shed all the tears she needed to while at the hospital, and she would cry no more now.

When she had fallen from the Scarab, dangled from a ledge in her own mind, or seen Hatter led away for torture by the Queen of Hearts Suits, she hadn't cried. It was because she had built herself up, covered her heart with a high running wall and refused to let her emotions be a barrier. It was only when her Father turned up in Wonderland that her walls had started to crumble, and when he died they had obliterated completely. At the time, she had wondered whether it was a good thing. Her Mother had been right about Alice's trouble with boyfriends. No matter how close she got to them, how much she liked them, she had trouble lowering the walls and letting them in. Not even Jack had managed to enter her heart. Now, though, with her armour stripped from her, perhaps Hatter would suddenly grab her to him, swing her around, kiss-

The clack-clack of Carol's high heels brought Alice back to earth with a jolt. She bent her head to try and cover her scarlet cheeks and dropped a little ring box her Father had given her when she was nine in with the photos. Her Mom paused in the doorway and (finally in control of her reddened cheeks) Alice glanced at her.

"What's this about?" Carol asked.

Despite herself, Alice smiled. "I don't need to look for Dad anymore", she told her Mom. She shut the lid firmly over the hat box. But just because she was closing the box, didn't mean she would never open it again. "It's time to move on", she said, sliding it beneath her bed.

Her Mum raised one eyebrow, but the sound of the door buzzer cut off whatever she had been about to say. Alice, who had been in the middle of rolling the world map she had used to try and track her Father, jumped at the sound.

"Oh", Carol said. "I almost forgot: the construction worker who found you, he wanted to stop by to see how you were", she smiled knowingly. "Very sweet".

Her Mom danced off in her heels to get the door while Alice bit her lip. She would have preferred to spend the day in her room, closing a chapter of her life while thinking over memories and packing away the things she no longer needed. But she couldn't very well ignore the man who had saved her, could she?

She placed the map beside the hat box beneath her bed and straightened up. All that was left was the present her Dad had bought her when she was a child. She picked up her copy of _Alice's Adventure In Wonderland_ off her bed and lovingly stroked the cover. _How can I possibly part with that?_ She thought. It didn't just connect her with her Father, it connected her to Hatter, Charlie, Jack and the most amazing adventure she'd had.

"Alice?" Carol called from the other room. "Come meet David!"

So it was with a smile, that Alice very carefully placed the book on top of her dresser.

She wandered into the main room, twiddling her fingers, trying to ready up a big false smile to show the man who saved her how grateful she was. But when she lifted her head and caught sight of him, she stopped. Her feet stopped, her breathing stopped, her heart stopped.

"Hatter!" she cried.

The next moment she was flying. She charged across the room and into his arms, holding him as tightly as she could. It seemed impossible, but then after what she'd seen, she was beginning to think there was no such thing as impossibilities.

Beneath her arms, Hatter let out a short breath. "Finally".

She laughed weakly. "You have no idea how happy I am to see you".

She thought she felt him laugh and she pulled back slightly. There was a pause while they just looked at each other, then he bent his head and in one quick movement captured her mouth with his own. _Finally!_ Alice thought, repeating Hatter's sentiments. They broke apart just enough for Hatter to murmur: "I've missed you", against her lips. And then they were kissing again, Alice caressing his face while he pulled her tighter to him. It was better then she could have ever wished for.

When they did finally brake apart, both breathing heavily but grinning foolishly, Alice was suddenly aware of her Mother looking on from a distance. Her mouth hung open and her eyes were as round as the chinese lanterns that hung from the ceiling. She rooted around for something to say, but couldn't think of a single answer that would explain why she had started kissing a total stranger. Hatter hadn't noticed and rubbed his hands over her forearms, soothing her.

"Have you come to make use of your offer?" Alice asked.

His forehead creased and she felt her lips twitch with amusement.

"Pizza?" she persisted.

And that was it. It was as though a cloud passed straight over his face and the smile slipped from Hatter's features as though it had never been there.

"No, Alice", his hands tightened on her arms.

She had never seen him like this. He looked - she hated to say it - almost afraid.

"I'm sorry", he continued.

She didn't care what he said. She'd make sure it wouldn't effect her. During her night in hospital she'd had a lot of time to think things over, and also a lot of time to rebuild the walls around her heart. After all, upon returning home, Hatter hadn't grabbed her to him, swing her around and kissed her lips. He'd let her go. He may be back now, but she also had her armour back on.

He was looking her straight in the eye. "But we have to go back".


	2. Chapter One

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the Syfy movie Alice, nor do I claim to own it's characters. This story is strictly for enjoyment purposes so please no one sue me! I do, however, own a Casablanca poster, a vase of lavender flowers and a Youth Bible!

**A/N **Well… this was a long time coming :L Sorry for the wait, but as well as having a bad case of Writer's Block my life has suddenly turned so hectic I've barely even _seen_ my computer recently. To make up for it, I bring you TWO chapters together!

So I've decided that this story is going to be in several parts. Part One backtracks, so you Andrew Lee Potts fans will see lots of Hatter and what's happening in Wonderland. Part Two - which shouldn't be long in coming - will pick up from after the Prologue. Hope that clears it up :)

In the meantime, sit back, enjoy and keep reviewing (you don't know how much those reviews mean to me!) *sniff*

**PART ONE: The 32 Days**

**Chapter One**

That first day had been very hard.

Hatter watched Alice being escorted from him and pushed through the Looking-Glass with a heavy heart. _Well, that's it_, he thought sadly, _she's gone_. What was left for him now? At least Alice had a home to return to. A Mother who was waiting for her. What did Hatter have? A destroyed shop, a stuck up King to serve and a resistance leader out for his blood. Well, at least there might be something in his shop that he could salvage.

He was pulled out of his thoughts by Charlie, who had suddenly appeared at his side, muttering something about _his_ 'Alice of Legend'. Hatter nodded his head and mumbled 'yep' for a while, his eyes drifting off to the ceiling -along with his thoughts.

"Her presence shall be greatly missed throughout this wondrous land", Charlie was saying. "But I am sure she knows", he straightened up, his stance changing so abruptly it grabbed Hatter's attention once more. "That shall she ever be in need of my help, she need only to ask for it. And I shall come riding in to save her".

Hatter rolled his eyes. If there was any situation that involved Alice needing help he was sure she could handle it by herself. After all, it was only her world, how dangerous could it be? Then again, she did seem to be a kind of magnet for danger.

"Ahem".

Hatter's spine went rigid.

"Ah!" Charlie crowed diligently beside him. "Your Majesty".

Slowly, Hatter turned on his heel to face Jack. _Don't expect me to bow to you, you snobby-girl-stealing-well-dressed-prick_, Hatter informed him mentally.

"Excuse me, Charlie", Jack said pleasantly. "But I was wondering if I might have a word with Hatter. Alone".

"Of course, Your Highness".

Charlie bowed formally, retreating backwards until he came very close to crashing into a nearby girl Oyster who squealed and scuttled away just in time.

"Charlie", Jack called after him. "I will have need of a new leader for my army. Someone to train them up and keep them in order. Would you be willing to take the job?"

Charlie paused looking flabbergasted. He opened his mouth several times without saying anything, setting his whiskers jerking. Hatter shifted uneasily. _Of course Jack would be able to win him around with great jobs and nice words_. He scowled. _That's probably how he won Alice too_.

"Your Majesty, it would be an honour", Charlie said, bowing once again.

Once he had retreated far enough, Jack turned his attention to Hatter. Neither of them were smiling.

"So, what are you going to do now?" Jack asked.

"I don't think that's any of your business", Hatter answered, grimacing internally.

"I'd be very pleased to offer you a job once we've rebuilt the palace", said Jack, looking anything but pleased.

"Thanks, but I'm me own man really".

Jack looked him up and down like he was disgusted with him "So", he said. "You lead her along all this time and then you don't go after her?"

"I? No - I… what?"

"Alice" Jack enunciated. "You just let her go".

"But", Hatter's eyes were becoming wide. "It was you she wanted!"

"Don't be ridiculous, you know she turned me down", it looked like it was hard for him to admit to it.

Hatter was very confused. "But, I, she, you two…" he struggled, waving his arms about in attempt to show his befuddlement. "She hugged you!" he finally burst out.

Jack rolled his eyes. "She was saying goodbye, you idiot".

Hatter drew himself up furiously, but Jack pressed on before he could be insulted back.

"She told me she wanted something else. I _assumed_ she meant you".

Hatter stared at him for a few moments, the realisation taking a while to dawn on him.

_("You want me to stay?")_

_("Hell no!")_

Hatter closed his eyes. "I am an idiot".

"Yes, I completely agree. But it's not me you should be telling".

Hatter opened his eyes to look at Jack. The taller man stood with one eyebrow raised. Waiting.

"Can I…" Hatter gestured towards the large mirror, trying hard to be polite. "Use the Looking-Glass?"

"Of course. But you'd better hurry".

Hatter didn't wait to say goodbye. He barely managed to mutter 'thanks' before he'd turned and dashed headfirst at the mirror. The same Oyster Charlie had nearly knocked into was about to climb through and she stepped aside just in time to avoid colliding with Hatter. He threw himself into the glass, which rippled and bounced.

He had travelled through the Looking-Glass before, but the feeling was one you could never get used to. He knew he was yelling out as he fell, but the sound was compressed and all he could hear was the rushing in his ears. Lights streamed past him too quickly to see, and then suddenly he was crashing out onto hard concrete.

He cursed and reached for his hat, which had fallen off. Stuffing it back on his head he pressed his fingers into his ears to try and rid them of the leftover ringing sensation. He was back on his feet and dusting himself off when a light suddenly shone on him.

"Alice?" a worried voice called out.

"Uh, no", he called back.

The figure holding the light came closer and he saw it was a woman. She lowered her torch and sighed, pushing her short reddish hair back with a shaky hand.

"Have you seen a girl?" she asked desperately. "Dark hair, blue dress? She's not a child, but she's missing".

"Alice?" Hatter whispered.

The woman's eyes widened. "Yes, how did you know?"

"Uh… you called it out, just now".

"Oh, yes", she still looked suspicious, but Hatter could see she was also frightened. "I'm sorry to have bothered you".

"No, that's fine", he said quickly. "Let me help you look for her. How long has she been missing?"

"She left home an hour ago".

_An hour?_ Thought Hatter. _Boy, time moves slowly in this place_. The two of them rounded the corner and spotted a man by the fire stairs. He wore several layers of old, dirty clothing and was clutching a bottle of whiskey to his chest. The red head approached him wearily.

"Excuse me, have you seen a dark haired girl in a blue dress?"

Hatter glanced back towards the Looking-Glass, where he's dropped his hat. There was a small gap between the wall the mirror rested on and the building beside it. So small it would be hard to call it an alley. While the woman tried to get a coherent answer from the drunk, Hatter gently removed the torch from her hand and started towards the little walkway.

He shone the torch through the gap and started. Alice lay on the ground, looking unharmed but unconscious.

"She's over here!" Hatter called out.

He bent over her, gently removing a stray piece of hair from her cheek. Her Mother - Hatter had pretty much guessed this was who the woman was - hurried over in her high heels, kneeling quickly and pulling Alice onto her lap.

"Alice? Sweetie? Can you hear me?"

Alice lay still in her arms, unresponsive.

"We should get her to a hospital", Hatter said worriedly.

"We?" Carol looked at him quizzically.

"Oh, I mean… you", he gritted his teeth, wishing there was some way he could talk her into taking him.

Then they both saw something very strange. Still in a state of sleep, Alice's hand had twitched upwards and her pale fingers suddenly closed tightly around the front of Hatter's shirt. Gently - ever so gently - Hatter took her wrist and tugged on it. Her hand refused to let go.

He looked back up at Carol who was staring at him with her mouth open.

"Well", she said slowly. "I guess that means you're coming too"


	3. Chapter Two

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the Syfy movie Alice, nor do I claim to own it's characters. This story is strictly for enjoyment purposes so please no one sue me! I do, however, own a pair of red pointe shoes, an empty bottle of Coke and the original book by Lewis Carroll.

**A/N **Chapter Two for you lovely people! I know it's only short, but I promise chapter three will be longer :)

**PART ONE: The 32 Days**

**Chapter Two**

They took a taxi to the hospital. Hatter carried Alice in his arms and kept her on his lap through the short ride. It was hard not to hold her too intimately, when he knew her Mother was watching his every move.

Once they reached A&E some doctors came and took Alice and her Mother away, leaving Hatter by himself in the waiting room. He looked about him uneasily. Several people sat frowning, a nurse was comforting one woman and there was a family crying in the corner. It made Hatter want to run back to the Looking-Glass.

After listening to the family's tears for what he would defiantly class as 'too long', Hatter walked over to the receptionist, a false smile planted over his face.

"Hey", he said.

She looked surprised by his apparent cheeriness and raised a dark eyebrow.

"I was just wondering what you could tell me about my friend: Alice Hamilton? She was brought in here a while ago and I haven't heard anything yet".

The receptionist shook her head, too tired even to return his smile.

"I'm sorry", she said. "I can't help you".

"But, isn't that your job?"

"Sir, if I knew how your friend was, I'd tell you. But I haven't been told myself. Sorry".

Hatter leaned his arms across the desk, deciding to turn on the 'charm'.

"What's your name?" he asked innocently.

Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Louisa".

"Louisa? That's a great name, I'm… David- Hatter. I'm David Hatter".

She wasn't smiling, but the hardness had left her eyes. "Hello David Hatter".

He grinned. "Tell me Louisa, where do you think they'd have taken my friend to, when she came in. Would it be an operating room?"

"Oh no!" she was quick to relieve his mind. "No, she'll be just down the hall, getting checked out. The doctor's probably in there now".

"So", he smiled wickedly. "If you wanted to, you _could_ technically just pop down and find out if everything was okay?"

She lowered her eyes, definitely beginning to flirt back. "I suppose I could".

"Louisa?"

She looked up at him, biting her lip a moment before submitting with a smile.

"Alright, I'll see what I can find out".

"Thank you", he said earnestly.

She was only gone two minutes before she came back looking slightly less smiley. It seems disturbing a doctor who has been working for twenty-four hours straight, with a sappy smile on your face and questions about the patient he's trying to look after, doesn't earn you any points, as much as a few sharp words and a death glare.

"The doctor says she's going to be fine, he's just running some tests. The woman who's with her wanted me to tell you that you don't have to stick around, you can leave if you want".

"I'll wait", he said firmly.

Louisa nodded and bent her head over her work, deciding to play it safe by ignoring him.

Hatter was forced to wait ages before Carol returned. She looked exhausted and was carrying her high heels in one hand.

"It was good of you to wait", she said. "She's going to be fine. The doctor checked her over and apart from a few minor cuts and bruises she's just fine".

Hatter breathed out a sigh of relief and Carol wondered why this stranger should be so concerned about a girl he'd never met. Maybe what her father used to tell her as a child was true: a stranger _is_ just a friend you haven't met yet.

"I'm going to stay until she wakes up", Carol told him. "But there's no reason for you to stay any longer, now that you know she's okay".

Hatter nodded regretfully. "I don't suppose - when she's home - I could drop by and see her? You know, just to make sure she's okay?"

Carol smiled. This guy really was turning out to be a sweetheart. "Sure. Maybe you could come by sometime tomorrow afternoon?"

"Great!"

That gave him what was left of the night and an entire morning. What was he going to do in this place? Louisa offered to ring him a taxi, but he lied and told her his house was nearby and he'd walk.

It took him half an hour to get back to the Looking-Glass, on account of him getting lost along the way. When he finally reached it, deciding he was going to camp out until morning, he found a man standing before it, waiting for him.

Hatter looked the stranger up and down. He wore a long black overcoat and a wide brimmed fedora. His moustache was long, pointed and black, and he returned Hatter's scrutiny with very dark eyes.

"Who are you?" Hatter demanded.

"How does the little crocodile, improve his shining tail?" the stranger asked suddenly. His voice was gruff, like he'd just swallowed a handful of dirt.

Hatter missed a beat, staring at the man. "He pours water of the nile on every golden scale".

The stranger smiled grimly. "You are Mr Hatter?"

"Yeah. And you are?"

"A messenger. His Majesty summoned me to get you. He needs your help".

Hatter frowned. When would Jack ever ask for his help?

"What's happened?" he asked.

"Since you left, there has been some… trouble".

Hatter frowned. He was too tired to drag answers out of this man. "I've been gone two hours, how much trouble could have started in two hours?"

The man raised an eyebrow at Hatter's snappish attitude. "You have been gone four days, in Wonderland. A new threat is building, Mr Hatter. As I understand it, His Majesty wants your help on the matter".

Hatter shifted his feet. If something was wrong in Wonderland it must have been a big enough disturbance for Jack to call him on it. He wasn't allowed to see Alice until tomorrow afternoon, and time _did_ move differently between the two places. Maybe if he could clear the tiredness from his head enough to think, he could work out the time logistics and figure out when he'd need to get back.

"What is the threat?" he asked, absently scratching the hair beneath his hat.

The stranger's eyes took on a new light. "His Majesty fears the rise of the White Queen"


End file.
